Zoids: Blue Fire
by Argothia
Summary: Sophia Falk is a soldier and a researcher. She is not a babysitter. Particularly not for a pair of brothers with superhuman abilities, but when she discovers two such children she quickly finds that she has no choice in the matter.
1. Routine

Tall, dark evergreens swayed in near perfect unison on the whim of a strong wind that whistled through the forest like some merry spirit delighting in the otherwise silent night. The shadows of the dancing trees played, carelessly, against the ice blue sides of a large, canine zoid, taunting the moonlight that glistened off it's back.

"Man," grumbled the zoid's pilot, nervously, "Why is this forest always so creepy?"

"Probably, because you're a chicken, Soph," teased a male voice over the intercom, as a Redler swooped overhead.

"Oh, shut up, Meino! You'd be creeped out too if you ever got your head out of the clouds long enough to have some common sense!" Sophie rubbed her forehead, "Oh, why did I ever agree to this mission?"

Meino chuckled, "As if you could resist a chance to impress Captain Wit 'Dreamy' Teufel back there."

"What exactly are you implying, Mr. Moving Target?" Sophie threatened.

"Nothing, nothing at all!"

"You better not be."

There was a long moment of silence then Meino's voice came over the communicator again, "Sophie and Wit sittin' in a tree k-i-s-s-i-n-g~!"

"Meino!"

The Redler pilot laughed.

"Errgh, let's just get this over with," Sophie pushed the Wardog into a run. The large zoid, happily, obliged her command racing the flying zoid overhead and easily maneuvering through the wooded area.

"Careful, Soph, we're not far from the bandit's territory now," Meino's Redler ascended so that he wasn't readily visible from the ground, "I can give you support from up here but this old thing isn't good for much else."

"You say that," Sophie sighed, "But you and I both know the minute the fighting starts you'll be right in the thick of it. Just like always."

"Life's meant to be lived, lovey."

"Don't call me that."

"Whatever. How's Cirrus keeping up down there?"

A cheerful growl gave Sophie the answer. "She's fine," she informed Meino as the black and white organoid zoomed past the Wardog's head on her powerful wings, "She's faster then she looks."

Sophie slowed the Wardog's pace as she approached a deep gorge. Cautiously, she half allowed the zoid to slide down an incline to the bottom of the dark crevasse and crept forward. Keeping her eyes open for the bandits that she had been sent to deal with.

All was silent, even the wind had stopped. It was suffocatingly quiet, Sophie almost wished Meino would chime in with some bad joke, but the silence was probably better. It meant that she could catch any out of place noise.

Such a noise was not long in coming. Cirrus landed on the Wardog's back and let out a ferocious roar, just as the zoid's sensors flashed warnings of an incoming missile. Sophie frantically pulled the zoid's shield up. She managed just in time as the projectile exploded on the energy field.

"Well, well, what have we here?" crooned a disgustingly, whiny voice, "A little Imperial?"

Standing above Sophie on a large cliff was a black Helcat, balanced perfectly on the edge, "You must be one of the bandits hang out around here, hm?"

"Ah, yes, you would call us that," that voice was gonna get on her nerves quickly, "Bandits is a harsh term, I prefer collectors. See, me and my crew really just want to collect interesting zoids and other artifacts, and your zoid, m'dear, looks very interesting. Mind if I take it off your hands? That organoid, too, I assure you I'll take good care of them."

"You want them?" Sophie smiled to herself, "Come and get 'em, Bandit. Cirrus!"

Cirrus spread her wings and leaped into the air for a moment before turning into a near angelic light and fusing with the Wardog.

The Helcat leaped from it's perch and stalked forward a few steps, "I'm amused you think you can take me, little girl. You realize I'm not alone, do you not?"

"Of course, I do, just as you must realize that neither am I!"

The Redler swooped down and took out an unfortunate Heldigunner who had just made it's appearance atop the wall of the gorge. The explosion of the lizard zoid's weaponry echoing through the canyon as the zoid collapsed on it's side with an anguished cry.

The Helcat's pilot seemed unfazed, "Impressive, but a little Redler isn't going to be able to protect you."

The Redler swerved to the side as a series of shots nearly clipped his wings and several more Heldigunners approached the rim of the canyon.

Cirrus growled.

"Right," Sophie nodded, "Let's go, Cirrus!"

A touch of a button and ammunition flew from the zoids weapons blasting several of the lizard zoids away. As the barrage settled, the Helcat attempted to slip around the Wardog's defenses and attack from behind. Sophie spun her zoid about to face her opponent, this amateur wasn't getting past her and Cirrus's speed.

The Wardog sprang toward the Helcat at the simple brush of the controls. Shield still up Sophie rammed the zoid into her enemy knocking him backward. She would have pinned his zoid to the rock wall, but quick thinking saved him as he pushed off the shield and dodged to the side.

"Close, girly, but not close enough," that annoying voice again, "You're going to have to do much better then that!"

"Don't you dare think you're getting away with calling me 'girly'!" Sophie growled.

The Wardog charged the Helcat again. The smaller zoid sprang to one side then scurried backwards to avoid being hit by a Heldigunner that had been knocked off the cliffs above. The zoid slowly backed up, it's pilot examining the situation. The Heldigunners that had survived Sophie's earlier barrage were being picked off one by one by Meino's exquisite aim, it seemed that the Helcat would soon be the only bandit zoid left standing. The pilot seemed to make a decision, the Helcat stood up straight and took off running down the gorge.

"Ah! Wait!" Sophie moved to follow the lead zoid.

"See you around, girly!"

Sophie hesitated a moment, looking back at Meino. He seemed to be holding his own against the last few Heldigunner and had them well distracted with his hit and run tactics.

He could handle this situation on his own. If she could take out the leader, they would be able to weed out the rest more easily. Right, that settled that.

She raced after the Helcat.

The Zoids thundered down the dark crevasse. The dark feline Zoid bounded off rocks and even off the walls of the gorge, dodging the shots fired by it's persuer.

All the while that weaselly voice kept making smart comments.

"Whoops! Missed me again, girly!" The Helcat leaped into the air to avoid another attack and dashed onward.

Sophie charged after the black zoid. This was getting her nowhere. She would have to pick up the pace if she wanted to catch this guy, "Cirrus!"

A concerned growl. It was true, if she used too much more speed she wouldn't be able to stop quick enough if something went wrong. Still that was a risk she was going to have to take, "I know, just do it Cir!"

Cirrus growled an affirmative and suddenly Sophie was thrown against her backrest as the Wardog accelerated past it's normal limits. The Wardog was soon directly behind the Helcat. A moment more and she would have him. Just a little more speed.

Suddenly, the Helcat leaped onto the side of the canyon and the maw of the earth crumbled opened up under the Wardog's feet. Before Sophie could think she was swallowed by the dark pit.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>

_Enjoy, everybody, I'm probably gonna get shot for that cliffhanger XD_

_To be continued . . ._


	2. In the Tunnels

"Sophie! Sophie, are you alright? Come on, answer me!"

Sophie stirred at the sound of her friend's frantic voice broken by heavy static, "Y-yeah, Meino, I'm okay."

"Thank Eve," the relief in his voice was evident, strange for the Redler Pilot. What was going on? She wracked her brain for a minute then remembered, "Oh, right, those bandits. Must have gotten hit hard . . ."

She pushed herself up off the controls of her zoid she assessed the damage. Everything seemed normal, except, "Where on Zi, am I?"

"You fell into a sinkhole," Meino explained over the shaky transmission, "Don't move I'm gonna go get help!"

"Meino, wait!" Too late, the connection went dead. Sophie was left in silence.

"Ci-Cirrus," Sophie shook herself, "Cirrus, are you alright?"

"Gerrrrow," the metallic voice responded, affirmatively. As the black and white head appeared at the window of the Wardog's canopy.

Sophie leaned against her backrest and sighed in relief, "Good, I was worried. Well, at least I can talk to you until Meino gets back . . . Thomas is gonna be mad."

"Rrrr," Cirrus seemed distracted.

"What's the matter, girl?"

The organoid jumped down from her position atop the Wardog's canopy and peered off into the darkness of the cavern around them.

With a push of a button the Wardog's cockpit was exposed to the bitter chill of the underground cavern and Sophie subjected to a short rain of dirt and debris. She paid it little heed, though. Brushing what she could from her hair and clothes she climbed down to stand next to her Organoid and followed the mechanical being's gaze. There nothing to see in the darkness beyond the pale glow of the moon that shone down from the newly formed opening high above.

"What are you looking at?" the young woman questioned her mechanical partner.

"Gerrerrr," Cirrus started moving toward whatever it was that she could sense in the shadows ahead of her.

"Ah! Wait up!" Sophie ran a few steps and swung up onto Cirrus's back, calling back to the Wardog, "Stay, boy!"

The hound Zoid whined, sorrowfully, but, really, he had little choice in the matter.

Once Sophie was situated on the organoid's broad back, Cirrus started running making her way expertly through the cavern towards her destination. As they moved deeper into the tunnels the rock walls started to turn into metal and it began to seem more and more like a place made by civilized people.

"A ruin?" Sophie looked around, "What on Zi is a ruin doing in a place like this?"

"Rrrrrahrr," rumbled Cirrus, as she slowed to a walk and proceeded through the tunnel as it morphed into a dusty, old hallway. Cobwebs hung from the ceiling and walls, dust rose in clouds with every step the organoid took. The passage was growing smaller too, the rough stone above was dipping nearer and nearer the Wardog pilot's head. Sophie was soon forced to slip down from her organoid's back and walk alongside her instead. The pair walked in the silent corridor, darkness and death creeping up on them from all sides. It was like walking through a tomb.

Then quite suddenly there was a light. A faint glow in the shape of a square. A door?

Cirrus's steps quickened and Sophie was forced to run to keep up. What had gotten into that organoid? Sophie couldn't imagine.

They finally reached the open doorway, though the room that they now entered was large it was no less claustrophobic with all the cables and machinery laying everywhere. In the center Sophie beheld two large pods, the source of the light that had led them here.

"Pods? Like Zoidian Stasis Pods?" Sophie took a few steps towards the devices, she had only heard a little bit about them and never before seen them. What could be contained inside? Organoids? Zoidians? She knew better than to mess with any of the myriad of control panels that dotted the room. One wrong move and she could end up as an Organoid's lunch or worse. She would just have to play this safe.

A faded alarm went off and lights came on near the tops of the pods. Sophie hurriedly looked around for the reason for this sudden activation and saw Cirrus hovering over one of the control panels her black tail twitching with excitement.

"Cirrus!" Sophie hissed in irritation. The Organoid turned to look at her in confusion. To the last the lovable beast was cleverer than expected but nonetheless dense.

There was nothing to be done now, just be ready for whatever came out of those pods.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note<strong>

_Okay, so short chapter is short, but, um, it's been way too long since I last updated this thing!_

To be continued . . .


End file.
